DE 10 2006 027 707 A1 discloses a pressure fuselage of a generic aircraft or spacecraft. In the area of the tail portion of the pressure fuselage, the pressurized area—the cabin—transitions to a non-pressurized area. In this area, the load-bearing outer shell is supported by interior longitudinally extending stringers and by frames arranged transversely thereto. The frames have a shape corresponding to the cross-section of the outer shell. This skeleton formed by the stringers and the frames has no or only little mechanical strength. It is only after the addition of the outer shell that this section of the fuselage achieves its full strength.
Due to the pressure difference between the pressure fuselage and the non-pressurized tail area, forces act in the longitudinal direction on a pressure bulkhead forming the dividing wall. For the pressure bulkhead to have sufficient mechanical stability against these forces, various struts are provided. In addition, a pressure calotte bulging toward the outside in the direction of the non-pressurized tail area is integrated in the pressure bulkhead. The connection between the edge area of the bulging pressure calotte with the adjacent frame must be pressure tight and have sufficient strength to withstand any arising stresses.
A drawback of this prior art is the rather laborious connection with the various struts.
DE 10 2007 052 140 A 1 discloses a different technical solution for the attachment of a pressure calotte within a pressure fuselage of an aircraft or a spacecraft. The fuselage structure has an annular main segment, which includes a cross-sectional opening that is closed by means of a pressure calotte. A plurality of ties connect the pressure calotte with the annular main segment and thus bear the loads acting on the pressure calotte as tensional forces. Reinforcing elements bearing bending stresses can thus be avoided by this technical approach. The ties may thus be made with smaller cross-sections resulting in an economy of weight.
However, further components are necessary to create a pressure-tight connection of the pressure calotte with the adjacent fuselage section, in particular U-shaped arcuate annular frames with special bending radii which must be stably attached to the fuselage section by means of supporting brackets.
A great number of individual connecting and supporting elements is necessary overall, which each have to be individually assembled.